Education for Green Society: Approaches to Developing Thai Education toward Sustainability

Abstract

This article explores approaches to “Education for a Green Society” in the Thai context, clarifying its meaning, significance, and theoretical foundations, including Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), Environmental Education (EE), and the Whole-School Approach (WSA), as well as links to the Eco-Schools movement. It synthesizes Thailand’s current challenges, such as PM2.5 air pollution, wastewater, and waste management, together with the impacts of extreme climate events that disrupt learning and exacerbate inequality. The proposed development framework emphasizes a transition from “teaching about green issues” to establishing “whole-school green systems” across four dimensions: (1) integrating environmental topics and the SDGs into competency-based curricula and problem-based learning, (2) developing teachers through Professional Learning Communities (PLCs), (3) creating living labs with measurable systems for energy, waste, and water, and (4) building partnerships with communities and the private sector, including applying voluntary carbon market mechanisms (T-VER) for incentives and verifiable outcomes. Case studies from both abroad and Thailand (e.g., Eco-Schools, Green School Bali, and Krabi International School) illustrate practical possibilities for scaling up. The article concludes with recommendations for establishing a national Green Education Roadmap, revising assessment systems to measure “action and behavioral change,” and enhancing the resilience of educational institutions, thereby positioning Thai education as a key driver for a just and sustainable transition toward a green economy and society.